Chapter Text
"Come on kid, be nice and leave it be. Don't make me ask you twice."
"I am NOT A KID!" Edward Nygma balled his hands into fists and yelled at the top of his lungs, an exaggerated reaction that instantly made him resemble the... most annoying, moody child ever.
"But you are," Dick Grayson reminded him, imperturbable and unwilling to take into account a puerile wanna-be supervillain's pride. "Eddie, you turned fifteen barely a month ago."
"My name is Riddler! And my age is irrelevant! There's no age to be smart!" He shouted so hysterically Dick feared he might trigger an asthma attack.
Knowing the villains' medical file is essential to fight them, although it also encompasses more common aspects, for example... being aware the ginger shrimp in front of him is an asthmatic chronic who should take a daily treatment at least until he turns twenty-one, the age of lung maturity.
Yet the kid went on, screaming some more:
"I may be younger than you are, I am smarter than you'll ever dream to be! Show me some respect, Bird-brain!"
Robin sighed loudly. He was eighteen years old, his relation with Batman became pretty tense since the past weeks, more than it did previously. Nowadays, he seriously envisages to quit once and for all, to... move forward from the Dynamic Duo, from Gotham City itself, and try anew, forge his path on his own now that he is an adult who doesn't share much anymore with his mentor and adopted father. He was in the middle of a major internal life reassessment.
All of this to say... it figured nowhere in Dick's plans to be babysitting the Riddler this Halloween night.
The petulant child attracted a maximum of attention upon him, like he does on a regular basis since he is thirteen and first appeared in the Game. This time, all eyes were on him since he hacked the local television channel and spurted riddles, making people who were watching believe he hid bombs somewhere in town. As if the Riddler ever put bombs anywhere. This doesn't match his usual methods, it's clear he was bluffing to cover something up.
Nevertheless, the bats were compelled to consider this an actual threat. Consequently they split: Batman needs to remain available for Scarecrow's scheme of the year (the former university professor always causes mischief on Halloween, everyone knows he won't stay put a 31 of October...), Batgirl spends the evening with her dad unless they call her for emergency back-up (exactly what happened), Robin was sent hot on Nygma's tracks.
Very soon, it turned out the spandex-clad child who talks big but acts little merely served as a distraction to let time for Jonathan Crane's grand action. From what Dick caught in his communicator, Bruce and Barbara were on it, they don't require his assistance to handle the fear-obsessed doctor's attack.
Great. Looks like his permanent quarrel with Batman and Batgirl leads to them no longer wanting to work with him, even when main Rogues Gallery members are involved.
It's about time Dick flies of his wings and puts distance between Gotham and him.
Edward was beyond infuriated with him, yet... the distress that read on his face when Robin finally reached out to him was troubling.
Dick looked down to the child's outfit. He wore a new spandex, mainly made of silver and white, something looking like a white skirt comprised into the stripper garment's shape and...
"Wait... did you dress yourself like an angel for Halloween?!"
He hadn't noticed right away due to the absence of feathery wings on his back, but the tiny halo on his pumpkin orange hair, the white outfit with only sparse touches of opalescent green and how Eddie had perched on top of a quirky-looking plateform in the abandoned warehouse from where he led his hacking trick were relevant clues.
"... The doctor Isley says I'm a little angel. Not to be nice or anything, she just repeats this to prove I have nothing to do 'in the middle of the monsters' as she refers to herself and her colleagues," he pouted, frowning in a very cute manner whilst Dick locked a pair of handcuffs around his slim wrists. "But if I was a real one, I'd be working with Batman, not playing cover for doctor Crane when he could use a hand to divert your attention. So... no wings," he enlightened, he effortlessly deduced the reason of Robin's confusion about the incomplete costume.
"So basically: you were not leading a scheme yourself but playing bait to let time for Scarecrow's plan?"
"... Yeah. Sorta."
Alright, this time Dick couldn't ignore the pinch on the heart he felt upon hearing the redhead's miserable tone.
Truth is, he always felt bad for that kid, who has... nothing to do there, being hurt daily in a dangerous business that never brought him anything other than pain, disillusion and more pain, both physical and psychological.
"I don't have plans for Halloween," Robin let out before he thought it through. "Neither do you now that I found your signal. My colleagues are busy with your dear professor Strawman-in-burlap, so... Do you mind if we hang out?"
Eddie blinked rapidly, confused.
"If we hang out?" He repeated, at a loss. "What style?"
" 'Buddies style' if that's a thing," the young adult shrugged casually. "I'm not regarding. Let's find you a pair of fake wings to finish your costume and go out snatch candies. That won't change anything to your fate, I'm driving you back to Arkham after this, but... I can spare a few hours going trick or treating with a little angel."
Afterwards he quickly rectified the position of the handcuffs to tie Edward's right wrist to his left one.
"Just to be safe," he smiled when seeing the child's critically puzzled face. "In case you'd suddenly decide to run away."
"... Wouldn't do that," he lied in a half-convincing manner. "And... Robin?"
"Yup?"
"It'll be the first time I go out for Halloween with someone. Do you think you could... put on a little disguise too, like a... matching costume of some sort?"
"... I'll see what I can do."
After an ultimate stopover at a furnished disguise store, Eddie fixed his angel outfit and Robin wrapped himself in a long red dress, clipped two plastic horns on his black hair and painted drops of blood at the corner of his mouth with red makeup.
Dick didn't highlight how... happy the kiddo looked that night, being allowed to be an actual child who enjoys trick-or-treating, despite being a tad old for that, then participating to Halloween-themed animations and activities organized in the rich neighborhood where Dick drove him to properly taste the festive spooky ambiance.
Edward didn't thank the Boy Wonder after their night out, but Dick couldn't resist ruffling his ginger hair in an affectionate manner at some point, what messed up his foam halo, made him hiss like an angry kitten and was overly hilarious to witness.
Riddler and Robin conserved this Halloween as the cherished memory of an unexpected bonding moment in good company.
Edward sent pumpkin cookies plus a note wishing good luck to Dick's apartment in Blüdhaven when, over December, the sidekick definitely left Gotham and moved to a town nearby in order to start a new life without staying under the shadow of the bats.
_______________
"Da, ya look awesome!"
Edward's chest puffed with pride as a result of the genuine acknowledgement made by his sort of 'partner in crime' / the Robin he grew up with / that rebellious kid he is so fond of and loves like a pal or a weird little brother figure among the nest of bats-and-birds.
"Thank you! Been working on that one for weeks," Eddie showed himself off like a model posing for a photographer.
He was wearing an elaborate disguise that took him a while to finish, polish and for it to reach a result he considers 'simply outstanding'.
Edward's pants were crafted and embedded to resemble the rear paws of a ginger feline, with yellowish patterns shaped like question marks on the orange fur. He was wearing matching gloves prolonged by sharp claws reminiscient of an orange cat's. The central piece that attracted attention in his costume features on his back: a fantastic pair of ginger wings with a few black and yellow feathers incorporated into the shape. Entirely handmade, he glued each fake feather to the metallic structure covered of orange canvas he cut, designed, crafted and assembled as meticulously as he thinks upstream of his Riddler schemes.
To complement the outfit, Edward fixed a headband whose curve is invisible on his hair but whose big soft orange cat ears give him a plainly adorable look. They were the same pumpkin shade as his mid-long hair, falling in supple silky strands to past the level of his chest and the middle of his spine. Clipped to his pants on the back, a fluffy orange tail on which were drawn tiny black and yellowish stripes embellished the disguise.
Edward became a Sphinx.
He was so pleased with the outcome of his beautiful costume, he will gloat about it for months after this Halloween.
"The result is super neat!" Robin complimented, grinning widely. "I love it."
The brothers of heart shared a complicit smile.
"You can squat for a bit but not too long, I have a party to attend!" Edward warned him thereafter when the bird made himself at home in his modern loft.
Jason Todd's enthusiastic comments when he saw the homebaked pumpkin cookies and cupcakes Edward cooked in prevision of the evening added to Riddler's current good mood.
"Dah, wished I was invited too," the sidekick pouted when his acolyte informed him Penguin organized a grand Halloween at the Iceberg Lounge.
It's the third year in a row since the Rogues Gallery, who became the closest thing each ever had to 'friends', meet together for Halloween in place of being up to no good outside, elsewhere in town.
Of course, that didn't mean no attacks occurred over Halloween. Quite the opposite.
Notwithstanding this, no actions led by a main Rogues Gallery member, aka Scarecrow, Poison Ivy, Harley Quinn, Mad Hatter, Catwoman, Penguin, Mister Freeze, Killer Croc, Man-Bat, Clayface or Riddler stained the Gothamite streets. Joker belongs to another sphere and is not invited at the Lounge, so there's always a risk coming from his end. Plus they have no control whatsoever on the B-listers, C-listers, mobsters or thugs outside the circus, who often appreciate trying something big the night of the 31 of October.
Eddie must say, he is a fan of the positive way his bond within the Gallery evolved.
He established companionships, friendships and hoped to engage soon in a... relationship.
"I have plans for tonight," Ed notified Robin consequently, fixing his makeup to resemble even more the oldest mythical creature who gave birth to every hybrid between cats and birds in urban legends. "Don't worry," he gazed at the kid through the mirror he placed on the table of his living room when he sat on a chair to apply the orange, yellow, black and white painting on his eyelids, cheeks, nose and forehead. "Nothing villain-related, just... personal objectives."
"Like what?" Jason interrogated, eating a cookie despite Eddie's demand to leave his pastries alone, he was supposed to bring them to the Iceberg Lounge. "If it's 'winning the award of best Halloween cosplay', worry not Kittybird, it's for you!"
"No, not that... Though that would definitely be fair earned."
Edward was smiling so much he had to interrupt his makeup session, since he couldn't put more substance on his cheeks as long as he was grinning so much his zygomatic arcade hurt. Cheshire cat aesthetic all the way.
The young man turned around on his chair to glare at the bird slouched on his couch, his feet on the glass low table and a half-eaten cookie in his left gloved green hand.
"I believe I look good," he went on, trying his best to sound more confident than he felt.
"Ya look very good, Pumpkin. Worry not. What's botherin' ya?"
Jason addressed him an supportive smile that encouraged Edward to open up.
"I... hu... I will ask Jonathan out tonight," he revealed, flustered. "I mean... for real. We've been musing around the possibility of engaging in a relationship for so long but we never actually crossed the line. I want to... take our 'friendship' to the next level. I want to be more than his associate, sometimes his sidekick, the child he watched over during my first years in the Business, his smart student or his science bro. We have so much in common! And I... I believe I'm in love with him. For... for real... I want to make it real tonight."
Eddie half-expected Robin to make fun of him, call him a pussy for sounding so unsure or jeer his lack of romantic experience. For all the flirting, the seductive undertone in his demeanor and the notorious fact the Riddler is known to sleep left and right with many men when that can grant him an advantage, he is... clueless when it comes to sincere, genuine feelings.
Sex has nothing to do with love in Edward's perception. Being pretty and mastering flirting skills are a weapon as efficient as the sharp, clever words he has recourse to.
Not once, he associated using these charms to 'being in love'. What he feels for the Scarecrow is... different from any other sensation he experienced previously. Even stronger than what he feels since he is just a kid for Batman, his hero and the imaginary childhood friend to whom he narrated tales, wrote letters to, felt safe next to and wanted to meet, get along with and become a member of his family above anything else.
Funny how life evolves... sometimes not the best way, and never how you predicted it would.
"Eddie?" Jason brought him back to the present by calling his name softly when seeing his buddy spaced out, lost in thoughts as he often gets.
It's partly explained by his position on the autism spectrum, Robin had read on his medical file once.
"... Yes?"
"It's gonna be perfect," he reassured him. "Do not worry, there is no reason Crane would say no. Y'know... everyone in Gotham who follows the rogues' gossip figured it out. Same goes for us, only Batman hasn't found out yet."
"What do you mean?"
"I mean," the child answered, more sassy than ever, "that you're kinda late there, li'l Sphinx. Everybody knows Spooky Scary Skeleton and you are in love. Except you two, apparently."
Edward blushed crimson, his whole face a burning shade of red under the partially applied winged cat makeup. Jason bursted out laughing and Ed felt even more embarrassed.
"Hey Eddie... d'you think I could come too? I don't wanna miss tonight's shenanigans."
"To... the party? You, Robin, want to tag along at a rogues-reserved Halloween party in the Iceberg Lounge?"
"Yeah. I totally wanna do that!"
Edward blinked, confused when Jason smirked widely, dicovering all his white teeth.
All things considered... this could be fun. Moreover, he'd have a little helper in case he suddenly feels too shy to go on with his personal 'Scarecrow goal'.
It turned out an eventful Halloween night.
The fourteen years old had the best time ever in the Lounge, where he ended up welcomed after an initial confusion from the owner of the place. After the main party events, the bird cheered when twenty-year-old Edward Nygma and forty-one-year-old Jonathan Crane kissed, each dressed as a mythical creature since the prompt chosen by Oswald this year was none other than 'famous monsters'.
The Sphinx and a Banshee's relationship begun tonight.
Robin felt privileged he was present this evening to witness the birth of their union, on top of spending a lovely time with Eddie and his pals. And eating good food... plus tasting rum and red wine when nobody watched him.
As for him, Riddler couldn't think of a better Halloween celebration.
_______________
"I shouldn't be surprised to see you there," Tim Drake jested in a dismissive, condescending manner. "Always a child playing dress-up."
A wave of pure hatred surged inside Edward's organism.
"I have no time for you..." Riddler declared cooly, having no desire to waste his breath for the disgusting wannabe who stole Jason's name and blackmailed his way into a Robin position he neither deserved, earned nor made any good use of.
Then, because the teenager was apparently about to argue, Ed spat a dry, aggressive one-word conclusion:
"... Replacement."
Drake's expression darkened. He claims to be nothing like the other bats-and-birds, he tries (and fails) to make both enemies and allies believe he is so much smarter and better than Batman himself when he can't even understand basic human decency and the meaning of following an honor code.
He despises this nickname. Replacement.
The Robin who should never have been there. The unworthy sidekick. The infection that poisoned the bat-clan, like a cuckoo hatched in a robin nest who pushed the other eggs out of his way.
Tim hates Riddler more than any other Rogues Gallery member precisely because the trickster saw right through him from the start and never backed down from calling him out, from pointing to Batman that he is not clear, should be watched over and hides his true motives behind a mask of false, uncoaxing innocence. Everyone links Ed's aversion to his brotherly love for the Second Robin: he never recovered from Jason's gruesome murder at the hands of the Joker, and a part of him will forever remain damaged by the horrific action he hadn't been able to prevent.
No wonder he had a hard time accepting Batman showing up with a third sidekick, merely six months after Jason's death.
First thing first he hated the Dark Knight for hiring the new kid. Secondly he investigated and realized said kid blackmailed Bruce Wayne after he found out his secret identity and threatened to unveil it to the public if he didn't make him the Third Robin. Thirdly and lastly, he pierced Drake's authentic nature and his cold, calculating psychopath psyche.
No way the Replacement could benefit from a certain grace in his eyes.
And that won't improve the slightest given the insults Drake showered him with tonight.
Eddie looked down to his Green Lantern outfit. If he were to choose a superhero from the Justice League, it'd definitely be this one. Two years ago he dressed as Superman for a party at the Iceberg Lounge: Harley Quinn had chosen the theme then, and made the whole Rogues Gallery dress as flashy vigilantes in skin-tight panties. Pamela Isley reserved Green Lantern's costume, the others had been attributed the main JLA roles by picking each a card. Despite looking nothing like the character he cosplayed then, Edward had done a good job by the way: fake muscles, an adapted size of combination and healed boots helped approaching the 'masculine ideal' Superman represents.
His cosplay skills had been saluted once again, whilst poor Jervis Tetch in his Aquaman disguise ended up copiously mocked the entire evening.
Good times.
Far from... these times.
"I hate you," Eddie murmured, closing his eyes a fraction of second.
"I know. I'm not very fond of you, either."
They shared a strange look. He recognized Timothy Drake in his Halloween costume, it hadn't taken long for Riddler to identify the Sherlock Holmes who introduced himself as 'Alvin Draper': he knows the Batfamily's identities for a long while.
He solved this mystery before he became the Riddler, when he was... just scared little boy Edward, freshly arrived in Gotham and desperately looking up to Batman, the First Robin and Batgirl.
Now he is twenty three, he's been a villain for ten years, he dates the self-proclaimed God of Fear, he won a colossal amount of money stored in secret bank accounts, he forged a solid reputation... And he has never felt as unhappy and miserable as he is right now.
Everything spiralled out of control after the Second Robin's death: his grip on reality, his mental health that went from 'concerning' to 'disastrous', his relationship with Jonathan which slid to emotionally then physically abusive, his partnership with the bat-nest...
He felt so small. So insignificant. So broken.
No more than... scared little boy Edward.
The Third Robin and the Riddler were both 'undercover' at an Halloween-themed fair. Tim because he investigates on a mob transaction he intercepted the communications of, Ed because he needed... an escape from the villains sphere. He didn't want to spend the night with Jon and felt nothing near in the mood to attend his first Halloween post-Jason's death partying at the Iceberg Lounge. He pretexted a business trip and ended... somewhere in Gotham, at a crowded, dynamic public square to distract himself from the sorrow by blending in.
That is, until he spotted this Sherlock Holmes sneaking peeks at him, reached out to him and straight-up announced he saw through his uncreative cover.
"So?" The teenager interrogated, his tone deadpan and lifeless. "What do we... do, now?"
"I have no idea."
Eddie sighed. The Replacement is not after him, a mature thing to do would be to discreetly leave the place and head to the hideout he shares with Jon. Except that...
"What are you investigating on? Don't give me that look," he scoffed when the detective arched an eyebrow. "I solved more cases with Batman and your predecessor plus Batgirl than I've been up to no good the past ten years. Not because I don't appreciate you means I should... cut ties with Batman and Cie. I owe it to Robin."
"I am Robin."
"Not for me. You won't ever be him. But... I'm still me, even if I feel like no more than the shadow of myself lately. Let me team-up with you for the night, Sherlock Holmes."
"... Fine by me, Green Lantern."
They stared at each other then... eventually went on with the plan. Somewhere along the way, Eddie even relaxed when eating cotton candy with the thirteen years old and listening to an animator who told short scary stories to a group of children nearby.
He hadn't counted on this Halloween to be a relatively nice night, especially not since he met the Replacement, but... it turned out amusing. And productive.
Even if none of them would acknowledge it out loud due to their mutual aversion, Edward Nygma and Timothy Drake formed a scarily efficient, intellectual duo of work partners.
In another world, in different circumstances, then maybe, those two could even have been friends.
_______________
Last year over Halloween, Edward Nygma and Stephanie Brown switched their costumes as Riddler and Spoiler.
This year, they were... both on the Bat's side, after Edward fulfilled for months a complete reformation and rehabilitation program crafted for him to quit the Underworld and return to the civilian life. The procedure begun the same time Bruce Wayne finally took Steph under his wing, trained her, acknowledged her skills and made her the Fourth Robin.
This was Eddie's ultimate condition: for Batman to non-officially watch over his daughter of heart if he wanted the Riddler to reform.
How they met is quite the story; Edward barged in at the Brown household to make Arthur Brown pay the price for copying him. He doesn't tolerate second-rate copycats, he intended to take down this 'Cluemaster' who showed up leaving clues behind and signing by orange question marks. Things didn't quite go as planned when, after he investigated to figure out Cluemaster's identity, the Riddler in full costume forced his house's door... to find no one in the first ground.
Only empty alcohol bottles, needles that serve to Arthur's junkie of a wife Crystal Brown who passed out in the bathroom after drugging herself to the point she reached the overdose-induced comatose state... and a little girl. A blonde child who watched him from the top of the stairs then hurried to her bedroom when their eyes met, and hid in the closet when Edward pushed her door open then sat on the small bedroom floor, heart pounding loudly in his chest and his previous rage against Cluemaster vanished to give way to a... genuine curiosity mixed with the strange, impossible to explain feeling he met someone like him.
Someone able to understand him.
Stephanie was eight and him eighteen when their paths crossed, from then Eddie became both her mentor, her father and her best friend... whom watched over her, sort of 'saved her' from where she was born and gave her... a new chance at life. The bats and the villains didn't know, Diedre Vance, Nina Damfino and him alternated to keep Steph away from the Rogues Gallery and vigilantism... until she made herself a Spoiler alias, at thirteen, and tried to open a gate for herself into the Business.
Edward and Stephanie were a Dynamic Duo of their own since a long while, now they genuinely feature among the Dynamic Duo. Ed always loved working with the Bat, Stephie became his official sidekick at seventeen. Things were looking up.
Hence... what better way to celebrate than dressing up as Batman and Robin this year, after Ed exited from Arkham via the official doors shortly before Steph's seventeenth birthday in June, and became a private investigator since then?
Batman and Robin starring, naturally, Stephanie as Batman and Edward as Robin. Otherwise it wouldn't have been diverting.
Steph replicated Batman's early aesthetic, wearing a simple dark grey costume with black around the hips and circling the top of her thighs, thick black boots, a yellow utility belt and a bright golden bat-symbol on the chest. She adapted a hint the long cape to add a deep eggplant shade on the inside instead of making it black or grey, and was pleased with the look of the cowl. The teenager tied her fluffy blond hair into a long ponytail on her back, funnily enough matching the shade of the symbol plus utility belt.
She may be too short for a Batman, she felt incredibly proud and bragged in a fashion truly reminiscient of Edward's drama queen line of conduct in her version of the vigilante's suit.
As for twenty-seven-year-old Eddie's dress code, it was reminiscent of the first Robin's: a red tunic with short green sleeves and golden straps on its middle from the neck to the waist. A large, round black patch printed on the chest on the left, with a bright yellow 'R' on it located right above the heart. A yellow cape, a little longer than Richard's yet shorter than the measurements of a traditional cape, Ed wouldn't have liked having a weigh pulling him backward. The cut of this cape descends to above mid-thigh, the black boots come up to mid-calf, without a doubt more convenient than Dick's Peter Pan-like green shoes. Green gloves of the same shade as the skin tight pants stopped ten centimeters below the elbows, on his forearms. The yellow utility belt buckled around the red tunic remained thin not to put weigh on the waist but practical enough to store indispensable tools.
And the eternal domino mask, white ovals circled of black fabric. The snug fit of the mask, actually comfortable, is identical to his former Riddler mask's. As for the vision itself, it's honestly like he isn't wearing anything on the eyes.
This brand new Dynamic Duo had been called earlier by Jim Gordon, for the interrogation of a villain freshly captured when he tried to crack the security system of one of Wayne Enterprises' main buildings.
Arrested, Calculator refused to talk to anyone but the bats... and ended up facing this fun Batman and smug Robin, who entered in the interrogation chamber with him at the GCPD headquarters.
Behind the one-way looking glass, Gordon couldn't suppress his growing smile when the kids boasted like theatre actors... Up to the point they shared a dramatic glance then Edward asked his daughter / sister / buddy-girl:
"So we're playing it... bad cop worse cop?"
"I get to be the worse cop!"
"Atta girl."
Jim Gordon shook his head with fondness. He watches the birds grow from day one, he feels... deeply involved in each chick's fate and life. He must say, this blonde girl and her bright, overflowing energy plus bold temper reminded him nearly painfully of the Second Robin... at the difference she proved to be more astute and more intelligent than the martyr child soldier.
Now that the beloved Comissioner thought of it, the Girl Wonder is an harmonious blend between the Second Robin's brave habits and Riddler's cleverness plus detective skills.
By all means, she is an endearing child.
"I wanna prove the Big Guy I'm his rightful heir," she boasted some more in her adapted and well-made Dark Knight outfit when Calculator failed to dismiss her by calling her a 'kid playing dress-up'.
"Does that make me 'the' rightful Robin?" Edward teased, grinning smugly and feeling way too proud of himself plus overconfident in his own custom sidekick uniform.
Both of them nearly forgot about the C-lister rogue, surrounding themselves in a mellow bubble while being cute with one another.
"You were always the best Robin, Eddie," Stephie granted him a sweet glance. "And you are my Robin from day one."
Gordon smiled at the adorable sight of those two hugging in the interrogation room, under... the appalled eyes of their suspect.
Without a doubt, Stephanie and Edward bring out what's best in each other.
Whereas this was not exactly what they planned for an Halloween night outside as the Dynamic Duo, they enjoyed their partnership to solve this affair.
They are both radiant they evolved from 'outsiders' and 'outcasts' to... weird family members among the bats.
They've come a long way to deserve their odd though genuine position within the bats-and-birds nest.
_______________
Damian Wayne hated every second of this masquerade.
"This is humiliating," the eleven years old grumbled, wrapped in a homemade werewolf disguise.
Eddie grinned smugly.
"You look great, baby bird. Almost like an adorable, normal little boy going trick-or-treating with his beloved stepdad."
The Fifth Robin glared mercilessly at the detective.
"You are not my stepdad, Nygma."
"Will be some day," he corrected in a sing-sang tone, then extended a hand for the child to take it.
Damian gazed at the inviting fingers showing an elevated level of disdain.
"No."
"... Alright," Ed smiled some more at the tiny demon's traditional aggressivity. "No hand."
Dami's gloves clutched around the pumpkin plastic recipient Edward shoved in his hands. Dressed like a simple but elegant Eldritch Elf, the private investigator insisted to take the bird out for a funny civilian night.
Stephanie as Batgirl is patrolling, she encouraged them to go for a cute time out instead of Damian suiting up his Robin costume tonight.
Thirty-year-old Edward was determined to remind the kid he is... a kid, no longer a soldier, a weapon, the 'chosen one' or anything else he grew up believing. Since he joined them, Damian is allowed to be a child raised and surrounded by a loving family.
It's alright that he doesn't know how to play or have fun. They were here to show him how to live.
In Eddie's humble opinion, it also passes by enjoying a nice Halloween celebration.
"Give it a chance, little D," he smiled at the grumpy boy. "You might even have a good time."
"... I make the effort alright. You must now persuade me this childish distraction is enjoyable, Nygma."
"I take up the challenge!"
Eddie laughed when Damian frowned some more.
Time to prove this cute bundle of rage Halloween is a festive time of the year.
Collecting candies and having fun into the decorated neighborhood, Edward felt invaded by... a strange sense of nostalgia when Damian took his right hand in a timid but sincere move to express his gratitude while they pursued their trick-or-treating tour.
He remembered his first amazing Halloween, exactly half his age ago, at fifteen with the First Robin.
Is he somehow impersonating the role Dick played with him, in an adapted manner, all these years ago with the new Boy Wonder?
So many things evolved and changed since that day. And yet... Eddie feels part of a long chain, a circle that represents life itself and made him realize he knew five generations of Robins, without ever wearing the name himself albeit he has been Batman's sixth non-official sidekick from day one.
Edward smiled when Damian handed over to him a tiny pumpkin-flavored candy.
"I know pumpkin pastries are your favorite," Dami said, almost shy: he is not used to show feelings or evoke thankfulness.
"They are. Thank you very much, Damian," he answered softly then ate the tasty sweet.
They finally shared a smile.
This year again, Edward Nygma and Robin spent a lovely Halloween night together.